Ragsdale-Graceful Circles (SP)-B/V/Cro./4M/P

Graceful Circles is a two movement work for 6 marimbaists (on four instruments), vibraphone, crotales/bells, and small percussion set up. Written for primarily two mallet “drummy” figures and incorporating elements of minimalism and post-tonal rock, the piece makes use of overlapping rhythms, metric modulation, and dynamic independence to explore the joyous energy that can be found even in the repeating patterns of day-to-day life.

Additional Information:

• Number of players: 8
• Difficulty: Intermediate/advanced
• Instrumentation:
• Player 1: Crotales (2 octaves), glockenspiel, djembe
• Player 2: Vibraphone
• Player 3: Marimba 1 (5 octave, shared w/Mar. 6)
• Player 4: Marimba 2 (4.3 octave, shared w/Mar. 5)
• Player 5: Marimba 3 (4 octave)
• Player 6: Marimba 4 (4 octave)
• Player 7: Marimba 5 (4.3 octave, shared w/Mar. 2), woodblock, hi-hat
• Player 8: Marimba 6 (5 octave, shared w/Mar. 1)